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Suppressed convective rainfall by agricultural expansion in southeastern Burkina Faso

Publication ,  Journal Article
Mande, T; Ceperley, NC; Katul, GG; Tyler, SW; Yacouba, H; Parlange, MB
Published in: Water Resources Research
July 1, 2015

With the "green economy" being promoted as a path to sustainable development and food security within the African continent, the influx of agricultural land is proliferating at a rapid pace often replacing natural savannah forests. Where agriculture is primarily rainfed, the possible adverse impacts of agricultural land influx on rainfall occurrences in water-limited areas such as West Africa warrant attention. Using field observations complemented by model calculations in southeastern Burkina Faso, the main causes of a 10-30% suppressed daytime rainfall recorded over agricultural fields when referenced to natural savannah forests are examined. Measurements and model runs reveal that the crossing of the mixed layer height and lifting condensation levels, a necessary condition for cloud formation and subsequent rainfall occurrence, was 30% more frequent above the natural savannah forest. This increase in crossing statistics was primarily explained by increases in measured sensible heat flux above the savannah forest rather than differences in lifting condensation heights. Key Points: Convective rainfall (CR) reduced by agricultural expansion in Burkina Faso Reductions in CR explained by reduced sensible heat (H) over agricultural sites Reduced H reduced crossing between ABL height and lifting condensation level

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Published In

Water Resources Research

DOI

EISSN

1944-7973

ISSN

0043-1397

Publication Date

July 1, 2015

Volume

51

Issue

7

Start / End Page

5521 / 5530

Related Subject Headings

  • Environmental Engineering
  • 4011 Environmental engineering
  • 4005 Civil engineering
  • 3707 Hydrology
  • 0907 Environmental Engineering
  • 0905 Civil Engineering
  • 0406 Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience
 

Citation

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Mande, T., Ceperley, N. C., Katul, G. G., Tyler, S. W., Yacouba, H., & Parlange, M. B. (2015). Suppressed convective rainfall by agricultural expansion in southeastern Burkina Faso. Water Resources Research, 51(7), 5521–5530. https://doi.org/10.1002/2015WR017144
Mande, T., N. C. Ceperley, G. G. Katul, S. W. Tyler, H. Yacouba, and M. B. Parlange. “Suppressed convective rainfall by agricultural expansion in southeastern Burkina Faso.” Water Resources Research 51, no. 7 (July 1, 2015): 5521–30. https://doi.org/10.1002/2015WR017144.
Mande T, Ceperley NC, Katul GG, Tyler SW, Yacouba H, Parlange MB. Suppressed convective rainfall by agricultural expansion in southeastern Burkina Faso. Water Resources Research. 2015 Jul 1;51(7):5521–30.
Mande, T., et al. “Suppressed convective rainfall by agricultural expansion in southeastern Burkina Faso.” Water Resources Research, vol. 51, no. 7, July 2015, pp. 5521–30. Scopus, doi:10.1002/2015WR017144.
Mande T, Ceperley NC, Katul GG, Tyler SW, Yacouba H, Parlange MB. Suppressed convective rainfall by agricultural expansion in southeastern Burkina Faso. Water Resources Research. 2015 Jul 1;51(7):5521–5530.
Journal cover image

Published In

Water Resources Research

DOI

EISSN

1944-7973

ISSN

0043-1397

Publication Date

July 1, 2015

Volume

51

Issue

7

Start / End Page

5521 / 5530

Related Subject Headings

  • Environmental Engineering
  • 4011 Environmental engineering
  • 4005 Civil engineering
  • 3707 Hydrology
  • 0907 Environmental Engineering
  • 0905 Civil Engineering
  • 0406 Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience